The combination of high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) at presentation and changes in N-terminal natriuretic peptide type B (NT-proBNP) after chemotherapy best predicts survival in AL amyloidosis.

In light-chain (AL) amyloidosis, prognosis is dictated by cardiac dysfunction. N-terminal natriuretic peptide type B (NT-proBNP) and cardiac troponins (cTn) are used to assess the severity of cardiac damage. We evaluated the prognostic relevance of a high-sensitivity (hs) cTnT assay, NT-proBNP, and cardiac troponin I in 171 consecutive patients with AL amyloidosis at presentation and 6 months after treatment. Response and progression of NT-proBNP were defined as more than 30% and more than 300 ng/L changes. All 3 markers predicted survival, but the best multivariable model included hs-cTnT. The hs-cTnT prognostic cutoff was 77 ng/L (median survival 10.6 months for patients with hs-cTnT above the cutoff). After treatment, response and progression of NT-proBNP and a more than 75% increase of hs-cTnT were independent prognostic determinant. In AL amyloidosis, hs-cTnT is the best baseline prognostic marker. Therapy should be aimed at preventing progression of cardiac biomarkers, whereas NT-proBNP response confers an additional survival benefit.

AL amyloidosis associated with IgM monoclonal protein: a distinct clinical entity.

IgM-associated AL amyloidosis is rare and may represent a distinct entity. Sixty (7%) of 868 consecutive AL patients referred to our center had an IgM monoclonal protein. They were significantly older than non-IgM patients (median, 67 years vs. 62 years), had a higher frequency of lymph-node involvement (25% vs. 2%) and significantly lower median proteinuria (1.2 g/24h vs. 3.4 g/24h), N-terminal pro-natriuretic peptide type-B (1177 ng/L vs. 2135 ng/L) and troponin I (0.02 ng/mL vs. 0.05 ng/mL). In IgM patients, kappa light-chains were more frequent (42% vs. 23%) and the involved free light-chain concentration was lower (median 63 mg/L vs. 182 mg/L). Serum albumin and NT-proBNP were independent prognostic determinants. Response to treatment improved survival. The 14 patients who received melphalan/dexamethasone showed a 64% hematologic (complete remissions, 29%) and a 43% organ response rate. IgM-associated AL amyloidosis is a distinct entity, with less advanced organ dysfunction. Treatment with melphalan/ dexamethasone might be effective in these patients.

Long-term study on symptomless human metapneumovirus infection in hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients.

From October 2004 through October 2006 a study was performed to evaluate the prevalence of human Metapneumovirus (hMPV) infection in adult hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) recipients. Sequential nasopharyngeal aspirates (NPA) were collected independently from respiratory symptoms and evaluated for hMPV-RNA by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequence analysis. Results indicate epidemiological and molecular differences between the 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 periods and that hMPV seems not to symptomatically affect HSCT patients or cause late respiratory sequelae. In addition, data collected suggest a hospital origin of hMPV infection in most HSCT patients during the 2004-2005 period.

CD34+ and endothelial progenitor cells in patients with various degrees of congestive heart failure.

BACKGROUND: Peripheral blood CD34(+) cells and circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) increase in myocardial infarction and vascular injuries as a reflection of endothelial damage. Despite the occurrence of endothelial dysfunction in heart failure (HF), no data are available on EPC mobilization in this setting. We investigated the pattern of CD34(+) cells and EPC mobilization during HF and their correlation with the severity and origin of the disease. METHODS AND RESULTS: Peripheral blood CD34(+) cells (n=91) and EPCs (n=41), assessed both as CD34(+) cells coexpressing AC133 and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) receptor-2 and as endothelial colony-forming units, were studied in HF patients (mean age 67+/-11 years) and 45 gender- and age-matched controls. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and its receptors (sTNFR-1 and sTNFR-2), VEGF, stromal derived factor-1 (SDF-1), granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF), and B-type natriuretic peptide were also measured. CD34(+) cells, EPCs, TNF-alpha and receptors, VEGF, SDF-1, and B-type natriuretic peptide were increased in HF. CD34(+) cells and EPCs were inversely related to functional class and to TNF-alpha, being decreased in New York Heart Association class IV compared with class I and II and controls. No role was found for the origin of the disease. CONCLUSIONS: CD34(+) cells and EPC mobilization occurs in HF and shows a biphasic response, with elevation and depression in the early and advanced phases, respectively. This could be related to the myelosuppressive role of TNF-alpha.

Persistent symptomless human metapneumovirus infection in hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients.

Sequential nasopharyngeal aspirates from patients without respiratory symptoms undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) were tested for genomic RNA of human metapneumovirus (hMPV). Persistent hMPV infection was documented in most of them and confirmed by virus isolation. hMPV infection etiology was also evaluated during the same period in samples from pediatric patients with acute respiratory diseases (ARDs). Sequence analysis of hMPV in HSCT recipients documented infection by hMPV genotype A and strong interhost similarity; this pattern differs from that observed in pediatric patients with ARDs. The data indicate that HSCT recipients may frequently develop symptomless hMPV infection.

Use of granulocyte-colony stimulating factor during acute myocardial infarction to enhance bone marrow stem cell mobilization in humans: clinical and angiographic safety profile.

AIMS: There is increasing evidence that stem cell (SC) mobilization to the heart and their differentiation into cardiac cells is a naturally occurring process. We sought to assess the safety and feasibility of granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) administration in humans to enhance SC mobilization and left ventricle (LV) injury repair during myocardial infarction (MI). METHODS AND RESULTS: Twenty patients with STEMI (mean age, 61+/-10 years), of whom 14 were submitted to primary percutaneous coronary intervention, were randomized to G-CSF (5 microg/kg/day s.c. for 4 consecutive days) or placebo. At entry and then at months 3 and 6, (99m)Tc-sestamibi gated-SPECT was performed to estimate extension of perfusion defect (PD) and LV function. The study drug was well tolerated and induced a significant increase of white blood count, CD34(+) cells, and CD34(+) cells coexpressing AC133 and VEGFR-2. At follow-up, treated and placebo groups did not differ for the angiographic coronary late loss and showed a similar pattern of PD recovery, whereas in the former at 6 months LVEF and especially LVEDV tended to be relatively higher (P=0.068) and lower (P=0.054), respectively. CONCLUSION: G-CSF administration in acute MI patients was feasible and did not lead to any clinical or angiographic adverse events and resulted in CD34(+) and CD34(+)AC133(+)VEGFR2(+) cell mobilization.

Flow cytometric detection of accelerated telomere shortening in myelodysplastic syndromes: correlations with aetiological and clinical-biological findings.

Using quantitative fluorescence in situ hybridisation and flow cytometry (flow-FISH), we investigated the biological and clinical relevance of telomere length in 55 patients affected by myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) compared with 55 sex- and age-matched controls. We found that telomere fluorescence in MDS granulocytes, and CD34+ cells did not decline with age as in normal controls and that MDS granulocytes and CD34+ cells had significantly shorter telomeres than healthy controls. A significant higher incidence of cases with intermediate-unfavourable cytogenetics and International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS) int-2/high-risk group was observed among patients with lower telomere fluorescence. We also found that apoptosis in CD34+ cells was significantly higher in IPSS int-1 low-risk patients when compared with IPSS int-2 high-risk cases and healthy controls and that CD34+ cell telomere fluorescence directly correlated with CD34+ cell apoptosis. Reduced telomere fluorescence was associated with a history of occupational exposure to toxic agents and with worse survival in univariate and multivariate analyses. Our results suggest that flow-cytometry assessment of telomere dynamics may represent a valuable tool in the biological and clinical-prognostic characterisation of MDS disorders.

Differentiation of follicular dendritic sarcoma cells into functional myeloid-dendritic cell-like elements.

In a rare case of follicluar dendritic cell sarcoma, malignant cells were isolated and cultured in the presence of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), interleukin 4 (IL-4) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha). After 14 d, 15% of neoplastic cells differentiated into myeloid-dendritic cell-like elements as demonstrated by immunological and functional characteristics. These cells showed the same cytogenetic abnormality of the malignant clone (fluorescence in situ hybridisation analysis performed on CD1a+ cells) and were able to induce allogenic T-cell proliferation in the mixed leucocyte reaction. These data may indicate that antigen presenting capacity could be a functional state inducible in cellular elements which are believed not to be of hemopoietic origin. Further studies are warranted to confirm these findings and to clarify the possibility to use these cells to generate specific anti-tumoral immune responses.

Soluble urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) as an independent factor predicting worse prognosis and extra-bone marrow involvement in multiple myeloma patients.

The urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) system, which consists of a proteinase (uPA), a receptor (uPAR or CD87) and inhibitors, is involved in proteolysis, cell migration, tissue remodelling, angiogenesis and cell adhesion. Recent findings suggest that malignant plasma cells express uPA and uPAR. The expression of these factors could represent a process by which myeloma plasma cells interact with the bone marrow (BM) environment and influence important biological events such as bone matrix degradation, plasma cell invasion and homing and, possibly, clinical evolution. We evaluated uPAR (CD87) and its soluble form (suPAR) in 49 multiple myeloma (MM) patients and correlated their expression and levels with clinico-biological characteristics of the disease. Flow cytometric analysis demonstrated that CD87 was expressed in all MM patients. High CD87 expression was associated with higher intensity of expression of CD56 (P = 0.038), CD38 (P = 0.058) and CD138 (P = 0.054) and CD45bright positivity (P = 0.014). suPAR levels correlated positively with soluble serum CD138 (P = 0.001), creatinine (P = 0.001), beta2-microglobulin (P < 0.001), disease stage (P = 0.017) and extra-BM involvement (P = 0.002). In the 46 evaluable patients, multivariate analysis showed that high levels of suPAR (P = 0.0214) and disease stage (P = 0.0064) were predictive of extra-BM involvement. In multivariate Cox analysis, 13q deletion (P = 0.0278), high soluble serum CD138 (P = 0.0201) and high suPAR (P = 0.0229) were the only parameters that independently affected survival. We conclude that CD87 is expressed on myeloma plasma cells and that suPAR, which predicts extra-BM involvement and poor prognosis, possibly represents a molecule with a relevant role in the biology of MM.

In patients with myelodysplastic syndromes response to rHuEPO and G-CSF treatment is related to an increase of cytogenetically normal CD34 cells.

The in vivo effect of recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEpo) and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) combined treatment on CD34(+) cells was evaluated by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) in 13 myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) patients with known cytogenetic abnormalities. After treatment, responsive patients presented a significantly lower proportion of FISH abnormal CD34(+) cells than before treatment (P = 0.003), and in comparison with unresponsive cases (P = 0.007). Response to treatment was associated with a reduced degree of apoptosis in CD34(+) cells (P = 0.021): however, no difference in telomere length was observed in responsive patients after growth factor administration. Although the number of patients analysed was relatively small, the present data suggest that, in MDS patients, response to rHuEpo and G-CSF may be related to the proliferation of karyotypically normal but potentially defective CD34(+) progenitor cells.